In a July 30 Rasmussen poll — a week before Akin won the state’s Republican primary — he led McCaskill 47 percent to 44 percent in a hypothetical matchup. That, of course, was before his remarks that victims of “legitimate rape” rarely get pregnant because biological defenses kick in.

Akin downplayed the findings.

“The fact that Claire McCaskill is only polling at 48% after 72 hours of constant negative attacks on Todd Akin shows just how weak she is,” Akin’s campaign manager and son, Perry Akin, said in a statement.

McCaskill, for her part, said she didn’t believe the results. She wants Akin to remain in the race, so any evidence it’s a lost cause for Akin puts more pressure on him to drop out.